Curious minds

[Sionnach Glic]

Aye, true. What I meant was that it was clear no thought was given towards, say, making the floor a pleasant shade of blue. It was all very practical and industrial looking, whereas the upper decks seemed to be designed with comfort in minds (though far from the extents to which TNG+ took it).

[Captain Seafort]

I fully agree. I liked the engineering interior a lot. I'm a bit biased as I work in a power plant but the antiseptic nature of the engineering spaces just never sat right with me. It was always too perfect.

Too perfect and, as GK alluded to, spectacularly devoid of machinery.

I agree as far as you go, but I'd expect the actually engineering control room to be both "antiseptic" and "perfect". Having the actual machinery uncovered for ease of maintenance is one thing, but having pipes crawling through the control room is quite another.

[Sionnach Glic]

Did we actually see the control room in ST:XI? We saw the engineering section itself, but I don't recall any sort of control room.

[Captain Seafort]

Not that I recall - and I hope that when we do see it it resembles a modern nuclear power station control room.

[Tyyr]

I'd expect it to look more like the engine control room of a modern nuclear powered ship, with piping and wiring running across the ceiling.

[Atekimogus]

About the engineering section, now it has been a while since I saw the move but was it implied that all those pipes and watertanks are part of the power generating facilities of the ship? Because if not, isn't it possible that what we saw was more part of the waste disposal system for instance? On all those nifty semi-canonical blueprints of all the enterprises are always showing a sewage treatment plant for instance yet we never see Laforge getting his hands dirty with the plumper's helper.

[thelordharry]

...yet we never see Laforge getting his hands dirty with the plumper's helper.

Trip was a 'poop engineer'

[Tyyr]

About the engineering section, now it has been a while since I saw the move but was it implied that all those pipes and watertanks are part of the power generating facilities of the ship? Because if not, isn't it possible that what we saw was more part of the waste disposal system for instance?

There's nothing I remember saying it was part of the engines. There is more to engineering than just engines. A ship that large would require a significant water treatment system to keep the hundreds, or likely thousands, of crewman supplied with water.

[Graham Kennedy]

They never say what any of it is, specifically. The only hint we get is that the core(s) are ejected from that general area.

[Atekimogus]

It even adds to the hilarity if you think poor Scooty wasn't only beamed into coolant water pipes but....well into the ship's sewage system . Thats the way making an impression on the smell-sensitive vulcan in command

[Mark]

I thought only Vulcan women had strong senses of smell?

[thelordharry]

And who's Scooty? Is that the name of Scotty's ermmm, sidekick in the film?

[thelordharry]

I thought only Vulcan women had strong senses of smell?

I remember the bits in ENT where there were many references to T'Pol and her delicate sense of smell but I can think of anything else in canon, regarding a male or female Vulcan having a sensitive nose?

[Mark]

I think they mentioned it in Broken Bow, about Vulcan females having a stong sense of smell. I'll have to go watch it again (inflict it upon myself) to be sure though.

[sunnyside]

I figured the water pumps were for coolant. That's what they're for in many power plant designes, and they may have lacked whatever whizbang tech lets them disapate or negate any waste heat from fusion and a/m annihilation.


As for the scorches and whatnot, I felt like the movie was depicting a more haggard Starfleet. With the technology of the time it'd be pretty easy to routinly redo the paintjobs on shuttlecraft. And doing so fits the model of discipline numerous navies have employed over time. However this Starfleet, presumably as a result of the changes after the Narada's arrival, is having to make some practical compromises.